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Primary 2012: Romney Wins Debate By Saying Nothing, Having Nice Hair

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Just started the debate now. I always get a kick out of politicians saying they aren't politicians. "I am currently engaged in the political process so that I can hold a political office! How not-politician is that?!"

Just started the debate now. I always get a kick out of politicians saying they aren't politicians. "I am currently engaged in the political process so that I can hold a political office! How not-politician is that?!"

"I'm a problem-solver," is the sort of vague, gravid statement that you'd expect from an arsonist or hit-man.

One of the complaints I hear a lot about Kerry is that he ran on "I'm not Bush!" and not much else. And it seems like all these candidates are running on "I'm not Obama," plus crazy. I may be wrong but I remember Bush being less popular in 2004 than Obama at the moment; I don't think that strategy is going to work any better this time around.

well, the republicans can also appeal to racism this time around, which helps them out in horribly biggoted and backwater areas such as the pacific northwest.

What the hell?

I've heard wild stories of racism and bigotry outside the big cities.

Well, the I5 corridor is a pretty notorious hotbed of KKK activity, but it's not like we're tripping over racists every time we turn the corner over here.

Pretty much anything not on the coast ranges from rather conservative to HolyFuckAlabama. Probably 90% of California, Oregon, and Washington are conservative, geographically speaking. It's just that none of these places are population centers.

ElJeffe on June 2011

Maddie: "I named my feet. The left one is flip and the right one is flop. Oh, and also I named my flip-flops."

Speaking of women voters, I suspect that Bachmann's really obvious repeated mentions of her 5 children and 23 foster kids was an attempt to soften up her image with the female voters who have soured on Palin.

I refuse to belive that bachmann is actually raising 28 children in her home. Maybe if she was a 60 year old social worker and talking about the entiretry of her career I could buy it, but 23 foster children sounds more like 12 year old boys bragging about how big their dicks are.

Foster kids aren't adopted children. She took in kids (presumably) that the state had taken custody of. That isn't typically a lifetime of caring for the child but a short to medium term thing. It can certainly be more but it isn't automatic or something.

23 over a long period of time, a couple of them at a time is entirely possible/reasonable/whatever.

Ron Paul is not even a person. He's not really supposed to exist in this day and age. I guess it is not surprising that they need a messiah, but it just feels... Wrong. He's just a generic extremist who, like all prominent libertarians I know of, seems a lot less outraged over the idea of destroying women's or gay people's freedoms than about companies being denied the "right" to destroy commons or pay insignificant taxes.

It's great that the candidates think they are protecting the Constitution, but their grasp of constitutional law is always sketchy at best. It could be that they fail to grasp the subtle nuances of the Constitution, but last night it just seemed like they had no ability to engage the subject matter with any depth.

Besides, after she drops out of the Primary, she can run for Senate against Klobuchar.

Amy Klobuchar is a good senator. The first time I voted for her was when she was going for Hennepin County Attorney. She didn't have a party designation, but I thought her last name sounded cool (like you could put a badass epithet on it... Klobuchar the Reaver), so I voted for her. Surprise surprise, she ended up being really good.

There are very few politicians that I will go to the mat for, but Amy is one of them. If Bachmann runs against her, I will pound pavement on Klobuchar's behalf.

Ron Paul is not even a person. He's not really supposed to exist in this day and age. I guess it is not surprising that they need a messiah, but it just feels... Wrong. He's just a generic extremist who, like all prominent libertarians I know of, seems a lot less outraged over the idea of destroying women's or gay people's freedoms than about companies being denied the "right" to destroy commons or pay insignificant taxes.

I suspect that has more to do with the ones that lean towards the GOP line getting more press time than the more reasonable ones (you can substitute "the ones that need GOP funding" in there too). A better test is going to be voting records.

Ron Paul is not even a person. He's not really supposed to exist in this day and age. I guess it is not surprising that they need a messiah, but it just feels... Wrong. He's just a generic extremist who, like all prominent libertarians I know of, seems a lot less outraged over the idea of destroying women's or gay people's freedoms than about companies being denied the "right" to destroy commons or pay insignificant taxes.

Libertarianism is such a strange phenomenon. It sounds good on paper, and I still like some of it in theory, but actual libertarians are some of the craziest and most evil people I've ever heard talk. The disconnect between theory and execution is just mind boggling. It's like understanding Jesus to be a hippy and then listening to Christian fundamentalists invoking his name while advocating killing gay people.

Ron Paul is not even a person. He's not really supposed to exist in this day and age. I guess it is not surprising that they need a messiah, but it just feels... Wrong. He's just a generic extremist who, like all prominent libertarians I know of, seems a lot less outraged over the idea of destroying women's or gay people's freedoms than about companies being denied the "right" to destroy commons or pay insignificant taxes.

Libertarianism is such a strange phenomenon. It sounds good on paper, and I still like some of it in theory, but actual libertarians are some of the craziest and most evil people I've ever heard talk. The disconnect between theory and execution is just mind boggling. It's like understanding Jesus to be a hippy and then listening to Christian fundamentalists invoking his name while advocating killing gay people.

That is because that philosophy is really easy to take advantage of to make people lots of money. It's also more then halfway to anarchism.

Libertarianism grew up alongside many of the social reforms that make life tolerable and is directly opposed to them.

Void Slayer on June 2011

He's a shy overambitious dog-catcher on the wrong side of the law. She's an orphaned psychic mercenary with the power to bend men's minds. They fight crime!

Environment
The basis for effective environmental protection is found in upholding property rights. The LPNC calls for the repeal of any laws which inhibit owners from taking action to legally protect and defend their property.

Daycare and Elder Care
The LPNC calls for the complete deregulation of the daycare, nursing home and home health care industries. This will make these services more diverse, plentiful and inexpensive, eliminating the perceived need for government intervention.

Fair Campaigns
The right to freedom of expression must include the unrestricted right to pay for dissemination of one's opinion. When the government controls the funding of campaigns, it controls the campaigns themselves, and thus the elections. Accordingly, the LPNC calls for an end to all limits on a person's right to support the candidate of his choice.

Taxation
Taxation is by its very nature a coercive and destructive act against the people. The LPNC believes that all people have the basic right to keep the fruits of their labor and enterprise. We believe that the costs of government should be paid for by voluntary means only.

They turn around and say shit like this:

Pollution
Pollution is a violation of rights and should be treated as such. Polluters, either public or private, should be required to make full compensation for any personal injuries or property damages that they cause. Criminal penalties are be appropriate only when deliberate or willfully negligent pollution poses a serious threat or causes serious harm to innocent people or their property.

Marriage
The idea that governments should give "license" or permission for marriage is inconsistent with the principles of liberty. A person's union with another is of no concern of the state except for the purpose of establishing next of kin and for that purpose, all adults must be treated equally. Accordingly, the LPNC calls for the state to leave marriage to religious institutions or private contracts and to repeal or amend all laws making distinctions based on a state of marriage.

Consensual Relationships
The government has absolutely no place telling consenting adults which adults they can love or how they can love one another. The LPNC calls for the immediate repeal of all laws that encourage or discourage any consensual sexual or family relationships.

Immigration
The LPNC welcomes immigrants to our state. There should be no laws that set different standards for immigrants and non-immigrants. People who are not citizens should enjoy equal treatment under the law.

Ron Paul is not even a person. He's not really supposed to exist in this day and age. I guess it is not surprising that they need a messiah, but it just feels... Wrong. He's just a generic extremist who, like all prominent libertarians I know of, seems a lot less outraged over the idea of destroying women's or gay people's freedoms than about companies being denied the "right" to destroy commons or pay insignificant taxes.

Libertarianism is such a strange phenomenon. It sounds good on paper, and I still like some of it in theory, but actual libertarians are some of the craziest and most evil people I've ever heard talk. The disconnect between theory and execution is just mind boggling. It's like understanding Jesus to be a hippy and then listening to Christian fundamentalists invoking his name while advocating killing gay people.

The libertarian response to anything is, "Sure, that works fine in practice, but it doesn't fly in theory."

It's great that the candidates think they are protecting the Constitution, but their grasp of constitutional law is always sketchy at best. It could be that they fail to grasp the subtle nuances of the Constitution, but last night it just seemed like they had no ability to engage the subject matter with any depth.

Libertarianism suffers from the same primary problem that Communism does; it relies on reality suddenly altering itself to allow implementation. "If we just scrap this whole system and start over this could totally work." Including, of course, retraining everyone in the system as it stands to a new life philosophy that would allow them to function within the new system.

Back on the road, down the highway, and Romney arrives at another diner in the town of Derry. Same format: More jokes about the media. "I was on TV last night, and these guys keep following me!"
He sits down briefly with Ashley DelPidio, a college student who'd just nailed down a job after putting her resume on CareerBuilder.

"How is it for other people in your class," asks Romney.

"Not everyone is lucky," she says.

After Romney leaves I check in with her; she, too was impressed. "I could see myself voting for him," she says. "Obama made a lot of promises and he hasn't kept all of them." What would she want President Romney to do that Obama hasn't? "The government needs to help people more when it comes to finding jobs. I think we could use more federal aid, or a federal program for people who are unemployed."

It's great that the candidates think they are protecting the Constitution, but their grasp of constitutional law is always sketchy at best. It could be that they fail to grasp the subtle nuances of the Constitution, but last night it just seemed like they had no ability to engage the subject matter with any depth.

I don't think it's that so much as that they're cynically courting the votes of people like the guy who wrote this letter to my local newspaper...

There is a reason that God put in our Constitution a means of....

That's as far as I can get before my brain starts leaking out my ear, but essentially this genius is arguing that because God himself inspired the beautiful ideal of small government in our Founding Fathers and guided their hands in creating a divine Constitution, and then showed his favor by protecting the country so it could be so totally great, we are bound by God to support Israel. No, seriously.

This is the person they need to convince to vote for them. If politicians espouse idiotic opinions re: the Consitution the cynic in me says it's because they need the support of idiots.

Back on the road, down the highway, and Romney arrives at another diner in the town of Derry. Same format: More jokes about the media. "I was on TV last night, and these guys keep following me!"
He sits down briefly with Ashley DelPidio, a college student who'd just nailed down a job after putting her resume on CareerBuilder.

"How is it for other people in your class," asks Romney.

"Not everyone is lucky," she says.

After Romney leaves I check in with her; she, too was impressed. "I could see myself voting for him," she says. "Obama made a lot of promises and he hasn't kept all of them." What would she want President Romney to do that Obama hasn't? "The government needs to help people more when it comes to finding jobs. I think we could use more federal aid, or a federal program for people who are unemployed."

So she expects him to do something no republican at all is or will ever propose and sees thats a good enough reason to vote for him over obama. Ok I get it people in america are fucking stupid.

I too had my brains slip out my ears on that one. Just....wow.... I also like how the candidates conflated supreme being from the declaration of independence, as being inserted into the Constitution, which has 4 references to religion and none of them to god.

Back on the road, down the highway, and Romney arrives at another diner in the town of Derry. Same format: More jokes about the media. "I was on TV last night, and these guys keep following me!"
He sits down briefly with Ashley DelPidio, a college student who'd just nailed down a job after putting her resume on CareerBuilder.

"How is it for other people in your class," asks Romney.

"Not everyone is lucky," she says.

After Romney leaves I check in with her; she, too was impressed. "I could see myself voting for him," she says. "Obama made a lot of promises and he hasn't kept all of them." What would she want President Romney to do that Obama hasn't? "The government needs to help people more when it comes to finding jobs. I think we could use more federal aid, or a federal program for people who are unemployed."

So she expects him to do something no republican at all is or will ever propose and sees thats a good enough reason to vote for him over obama. Ok I get it people in america are fucking stupid.

Hate to say it, but she seems to misunderstand a fundamental point of difference between Republicans and Democrats.

I would also point out that, Obama did in fact create several programs to help people like her get jobs. But hey, Romney sat down next to her for a couple seconds so, I guess he's the right guy to vote for.